Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Culture of Discussion: Critical Thinkers' Dispositions

As Thomas Edison is posthumously reported to have stated, "Genius is one percent inspiration, ninety-nine percent perspiration" (Harper's Monthly, September 1932). Apparently, Edison would have agreed that critical thinking is more than a set of cognitive skills, that it is also the expression of a disposition.

On page 10 of "Critical Thinking: What It Is and Why It Counts" (2010), Peter Facione summarizes the concensus of experts on what they call the "Disposition Toward Critical Thinking," which is divided into general and specific aspects, and I offer them here below for your consideration:

A. General approaches to life and living that characterize critical thinking:

1. Inquisitiveness with regard to a wide range of issues2. Concern to become and remain well-informed3. Alertness to opportunities to use critical thinking4. Trust in the processes of reasoned inquiry5. Self-confidence in one's own abilities to reason6. Open-mindedness regarding divergent world views7. Flexibility in considering alternatives and opinions8. Understanding of the opinions of other people9. Fair-mindedness in appraising reasoning10. Honesty in facing one's own biases, prejudices, stereotypes, or egocentric tendencies11. Prudence in suspending, making, or altering judgments12. Willingness to reconsider and revise views where honest reflection suggests that change is warranted

1. Clarity in stating the question or concern2. Orderliness in working with complexity3. Diligence in seeking relevant information4. Reasonableness in selecting and applying criteria5. Care in focusing attention on the concern at hand6. Persistence though difficulties are encountered7. Precision to the degree permitted by the subject and the circumstances

The term "disposition" is perhaps not well chosen, for it generally implies an inherent tendency, some of its synonyms being "temperament, character, personality, nature." However, the Free Dicitionary does also allow that it can mean "a habitual inclination," which is a bit more optimistic since it suggests that individuals can adopt a habit of critical thinking and thereby develop the disposition of a critical thinker.

I don't know how exactly to apply this, but somehow you would have to be dispassionate, but passionate or excited about finding a solution.

I think that Hathor is right, a dispassionate passion is a useful disposition to have as a critical thinker, for it would help provide the energy necessary toward fulfilling number 6 of the specific aspects listed above, "persistence though difficulties are encountered." Indeed, dispassionate passion could be said to be necessary in all of the aspects, both general and specific, for endurance is needed to persist in all of these habits within a world that often does not appreciate critical thinking in open discussion.

I might observe here that the motion of all open and free discussion will invariably move thinking people to positions of ever greater compassion, transparency, honesty, acceptance and understanding. The advantages to statecraft, science and economic development made possible by this open discussion are obvious.

This hasn't been my experience of "open and free discussion" on the internet . . . or were you speaking ironically? Discussions constantly get hijacked by trolls, flamers, dementors, and similarly mythological-sounding creatures whose intent seems one of destroying all possibility of communicative reason.

Most people don't seem to practice critical thinking, and too many seem to prefer disruption. Granted, Mr. Kaplan qualifies his point. He is talking about "thinking people," and that qualification would likely exclude a great number of individuals.

But my overall point in this series remains that of the importance of developing a "culture of discussion," for the possibility of critical thinking presupposes the right to free expression even though the free expression presupposed includes the right to insult, as I've previously argued.

One sees just how fraught with difficulty the entire enterprise is . . .

About Me

During working hours, I can be found at Ewha Womans University, where I hold an academic position identified as "Professor" according to the title on my office door. At Ewha, I teach essay composition, research writing, and cultural issues, including the occasional graduate seminar on Gnosticism and Johannine theology and the occasional undergraduate course on European history.
My doctorate is in history (U.C. Berkeley), with emphasis on religion and science, and my thesis is on John's gospel and Gnostic texts.
I'm originally from the Arkansas Ozarks, but my academic career -- at times funded through doctoral and postdoctoral fellowships (e.g., Fulbright, Naumann, Lady Davis) -- has taken me through stints in Texas, California, Switzerland, Germany, Australia, and Israel and has landed me in Seoul, South Korea. I've also traveled to Mexico, visited much of Europe, including Moscow, and touched down briefly in a few East Asian countries.
Hence: "Gypsy Scholar."